--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Perfection is something everyone strives…" description: "\"“Perfection is something everyone strives for, but it’s elusive and may be an illusion.”\" — R.L. Griffin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dec/r-l-griffin-30818_elusive_perfection-is-something-everyone-strives_575157.jpg" --- # Perfection is something everyone strives for, but it’s… ![“Perfection is something everyone strives for, but it’s elusive and may be an illusion.” quote by R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dec/r-l-griffin-30818_elusive_perfection-is-something-everyone-strives_575157.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dec/r-l-griffin-30818_elusive_perfection-is-something-everyone-strives_575157.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dec/r-l-griffin-30818_elusive_perfection-is-something-everyone-strives_575157.jpg) > ““Perfection is something everyone strives for, but it’s elusive and may be an illusion.”” [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He notes that perfection is a common but unattainable goal, often an illusion. **In simple terms:** Perfection is chased but never truly reached. Key Takeaway Accept imperfection and focus on progress. Themes perfection illusion effort Mood reflective motivational Type essay philosophical When to use this quote - creative projects - performance goals - personal development Key Concepts psychology of striving self-improvement Questions to Reflect On - What does perfection mean to you? - How can you value effort over flawless results? A Different Perspective Obsessing over perfection can stall action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Elusive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elusive/) [Elusive Illusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elusive-illusion-4738783/) [Excellence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excellence/) [Perfection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfection/) [Perfection Strives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfection-strives-4131648/) [Perfection-is-unattainable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfection-is-unattainable-142569/) [Strives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strives/) [Strives Elusive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strives-elusive-4738782/) ## Related quotes > [“Is there really such a thing as perfection? Of course not! It's a myth, a vicious rumor.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aimee-cohen/is-there-really-such-a-thing-as-perfection-of-course-not-it-s-a-myth/) [Aimee Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aimee-cohen/) > [“I'm starting to understand that attempting to be perfect has been the goal of my life. Our lives. Attempting to be this fault-free, smiling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-tarttelin/i-m-starting-to-understand-that-attempting-to-be-perfect-has-been-the/) [Abigail Tarttelin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-tarttelin/) > [“Human perfection and technical perfection are incompatible. If we strive for one, we must sacrifice the other: there is, in any case, a parting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernst-junger/human-perfection-and-technical-perfection-are-incompatible-if-we/) [Ernst Jünger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernst-junger/) > [The mind, the soul, becomes ennobled by the endeavour to create something perfect, for God is perfection, and whoever strives after perfection is striving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo/the-mind-the-soul-becomes-ennobled-by-the-endeavour-to-create/) [Michelangelo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo/) > ['Main Aur Mr. Riight' is about a girl who is looking for perfection. She strives for perfection herself and is searching for a partner…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shenaz-treasury/main-aur-mr-riight-is-about-a-girl-who-is-looking-for-perfection-she/) [Shenaz Treasury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shenaz-treasury/) > [“More important than success is the individual who strives towards his goal. It is the effort which counts. The goal is just a finish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dr-amit-abraham/more-important-than-success-is-the-individual-who-strives-towards-his/) [Dr. Amit Abraham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dr-amit-abraham/) > [I don't think anyone strives to be anything negative. I just think that it's our nature to only focus on a few things in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madonna-ciccone/i-don-t-think-anyone-strives-to-be-anything-negative-i-just-think/) [Madonna Ciccone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madonna-ciccone/) > [For there is no one so great or mighty that he can avoid the misery that will rise up against him when he resists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/for-there-is-no-one-so-great-or-mighty-that-he-can-avoid-the-misery/) [John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/) > [Our contemporary society is experimenting with the diminishment of caregivers for children. Some children are raised through crucial stages of life by only one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-gurian/our-contemporary-society-is-experimenting-with-the-diminishment-of/) [Michael Gurian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-gurian/) > [Every individual strives to grow and exclude, to the extremities of the universe, and to impose the law of its being on every other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/every-individual-strives-to-grow-and-exclude-to-the-extremities-of/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [We can always redeem the man who aspires and strives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/we-can-always-redeem-the-man-who-aspires-and-strives/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [“She strives, understanding the futility of it, for perfection.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-coover/she-strives-understanding-the-futility-of-it-for-perfection/) [Robert Coover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-coover/) > [The one who always strives, That one can be redeemed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/the-one-who-always-strives-that-one-can-be-redeemed/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [We all have Tumblr, and we all have Instagram and everything. People care so much about it because, now, any random can be famous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorde/we-all-have-tumblr-and-we-all-have-instagram-and-everything-people/) [Lorde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorde/) > [God loves to help him who strives to help himself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/god-loves-to-help-him-who-strives-to-help-himself/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) ## More by R.L. Griffin > [“She wondered if everyone could smell it on her. It smelled like death and coffee, like lilies and dirt, and it permeated her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/she-wondered-if-everyone-could-smell-it-on-her-it-smelled-like-death/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“I’m going to fight. I’m going to fight for you. You need to remember that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/i-m-going-to-fight-i-m-going-to-fight-for-you-you-need-to-remember/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“Hatred had invaded her entire being; every cell in her body had hatred in it. She wondered if everyone could smell it on her.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/hatred-had-invaded-her-entire-being-every-cell-in-her-body-had-hatred/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“Why keep putting yourself back together if you’re just going to keep breaking apart?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/why-keep-putting-yourself-back-together-if-you-re-just-going-to-keep/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“I want to be in the eye of the storm, holding your hand, and if you get sucked into it, I want to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/i-want-to-be-in-the-eye-of-the-storm-holding-your-hand-and-if-you-get/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“It's just that I love you and I can't seem to get past it." He smiled down at her. "You're really hard to love,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/it-s-just-that-i-love-you-and-i-can-t-seem-to-get-past-it-he-smiled/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“I think you may be right.” Stella thought for a minute he had read her thoughts. Then he said, “Best regret ever.” Jamie”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/i-think-you-may-be-right-stella-thought-for-a-minute-he-had-read-her/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“Time makes things tolerable. Time gives you perspective on events that shake your world to the core. Time allows you to move forward. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/time-makes-things-tolerable-time-gives-you-perspective-on-events-that/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“Seamlessly?” Stella’s laugh escaped her mouth and it was bitter and hard. “That may be an appropriate statement, because in order to look seamless,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/seamlessly-stella-s-laugh-escaped-her-mouth-and-it-was-bitter-and/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“I don’t get paid to be nice. I get paid to be right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/i-don-t-get-paid-to-be-nice-i-get-paid-to-be-right/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“Maybe he stomped on my vagina and I’m pissed about it.” Stella Murphy”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/maybe-he-stomped-on-my-vagina-and-i-m-pissed-about-it-stella-murphy/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“She was held together by a thread. Not even a strong fishing wire, but the kind of thread that could fray and break in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/she-was-held-together-by-a-thread-not-even-a-strong-fishing-wire-but/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“She was hard, numb. The hardness had come about recently, spreading through her brain and chest. She worried that if she were hit hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/she-was-hard-numb-the-hardness-had-come-about-recently-spreading/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“She’s the wire and you are the bolt cutters I needed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/she-s-the-wire-and-you-are-the-bolt-cutters-i-needed/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) > [“You're holding her hand because you want to; She's holding yours because she needs to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-l-griffin/you-re-holding-her-hand-because-you-want-to-she-s-holding-yours/) [R.L. Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) [Explore all 17 R.L. Griffin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-l-griffin/) ## More Elusive quotes > [I still don't feel I know Hitchcock at all. I find that the more one looks, the more elusive he becomes. But my admiration…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toby-jones/i-still-don-t-feel-i-know-hitchcock-at-all-i-find-that-the-more-one/) [Toby Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toby-jones/) > [“Good God, 'the elusive thing'. She had reached a turning point. She no longer believed that a situation could be made better by writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/good-god-the-elusive-thing-she-had-reached-a-turning-point-she-no/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [Humility is an elusive virtue. The more we pursue it - and the more we seem to acquire it - the more we take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-aquilina/humility-is-an-elusive-virtue-the-more-we-pursue-it-and-the-more-we/) [Mike Aquilina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-aquilina/) > [We are all pilgrims on an elusive and endless road... Despite our attempts to build lives on stone foundations, our spirits continuously flow. Endless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-lawlor/we-are-all-pilgrims-on-an-elusive-and-endless-road-despite-our/) [Anthony Lawlor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-lawlor/) > [I believe in good. It is an ephemeral and elusive quality. It is the center of my beliefs, but it cannot be strengthened by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-teller/i-believe-in-good-it-is-an-ephemeral-and-elusive-quality-it-is-the/) [Edward Teller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-teller/) > [One of the capabilities, which seems to be the most difficult for aspiring leaders to maste is realistic optimism. It requires one to recognize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-menkes/one-of-the-capabilities-which-seems-to-be-the-most-difficult-for/) [Justin Menkes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-menkes/) > [For at the heart of the uniform, reasoning is shaky and elusive: a mind in search of ideas should first stock up on appearances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-ponge/for-at-the-heart-of-the-uniform-reasoning-is-shaky-and-elusive-a-mind/) [Francis Ponge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-ponge/) > [Insofar as one can talk of a Vionnet school, it comes mostly from my having been an enemy of fashion. There is something superficial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-vionnet/insofar-as-one-can-talk-of-a-vionnet-school-it-comes-mostly-from-my/) [Madeleine Vionnet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-vionnet/) > [The object of life is not happiness, but to serve God or the Grail. All of the Grail quests are to serve God. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-johnson/the-object-of-life-is-not-happiness-but-to-serve-god-or-the-grail-all/) [Robert A. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-johnson/) > [I think love is one of the most elusive things in the world. I don't know that there's a perfect formula for it and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashton-kutcher/i-think-love-is-one-of-the-most-elusive-things-in-the-world-i-don-t/) [Ashton Kutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashton-kutcher/) > [Personal happiness seems mysteriously and frustratingly elusive. Even when people achieve it, they can't hold onto it. That is the greatest clue, the biggest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/personal-happiness-seems-mysteriously-and-frustratingly-elusive-even/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [This too is a jihad. Yet we Americans find ourselves in the dangerous position of going to war not against a state but against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hedges/this-too-is-a-jihad-yet-we-americans-find-ourselves-in-the-dangerous/) [Chris Hedges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hedges/) > [Relationships, for me, have been elusive. And I would say mostly it's been my fault. I was always more concentrated on my career. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-lane/relationships-for-me-have-been-elusive-and-i-would-say-mostly-it-s/) [Nathan Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-lane/) > [My name is Truth and I am the most elusive captive in the universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sandburg/my-name-is-truth-and-i-am-the-most-elusive-captive-in-the-universe/) [Carl Sandburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sandburg/) > [“Like wind and fire, water and soil, we used one another, to grow and blossom. Love was a dream, elusive as were we.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iva-hotko/like-wind-and-fire-water-and-soil-we-used-one-another-to-grow-and/) [Iva Hotko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iva-hotko/) [Browse all 333 Elusive quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elusive/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Perfection is something everyone strives for, but it’s elusive and may be an illusion.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "R.L. 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